Optical systems have found increasing favor for the transmission of signal information and data to the extent that such optical systems are in many cases replacing, at least in part, functionally analogous systems which previously had employed electrical and electronic signal transmission techniques. As in the case of electrical and electronic signal transmission systems, the functionally comparable optical signal information transmission systems must provide the capability of selectively switching optical signals from one transmission path to another.
The primary purpose of the present invention is to switch light energy, usually in the form of a modulated light beam, from one of a plurality of optical paths to a selected one of another plurality of optical paths. In prior art practices the switching of light energy from one path to another has been achieved in a number of different ways. Among prior art techniques, mechanical motion of a deflecting mirror positioned to intercept light energy signals has been employed to redirect the light energy of a beam to another optical light path. Unfortunately, however, many of such prior art systems, practices, and techiques inherently incurred disadvantages which could not be readily eliminated nor corrected.
For example, one of the disadvantages of the deflecting mirror technique is the fact that it is only capable of providing straight line transmission between two points which is an undesirable inherent limitation.
Additionally, many of the prior art techniques and practices require electrical and/or servomechanism actuation and are not readily adaptable to manual selection operation.
Furthermore, many prior art techniques are limited to switching light energy signals from one path to another of two paths; relatively few techniques have been evolved which satisfactorily provide for the transfer of light energy signals from any selected one of a first plurality of many optical paths to any selected one of a second plurality of many optical paths.
Accordingly, a need exists for an optical switch which may be manually operated to selectively switch optical signals by coupling any of a plurality of input optical signals to any of a plurality of optical output paths.